A Festive Fair! [Open]

No one ever questioned his outings. Far be it from them to outright ask him about his personal life. Instead, they would follow him around relentlessly—dutifully— leaving little-to-no room for choice. Not that Wes minded, though. It was expected that he’d be in the company of guards as a general rule of thumb. But today he didn’t care about any of that, no. Today boredom had taken hold and boredom often led to mischief and mischief often led to some pretty unusual choices.

So there he stood, leaning against a vendor’s stall, dressed outside of his usual business-ready fashion, nibbling on a pink puff of cotton candy. Languid eyes swept over the area on occasion not to see who he might recognize (although every so often they’d linger), but who might recognize him. A moment of amusement influenced by two oblivious figures in the distance allowed the smallest of knowing grins to cross his face. They wouldn’t find him. Not yet at least.

Acting quick he pulled the black baseball cap he’d bought earlier lower over his eyes, copper locks straying wildly from the hair bun underneath. He slammed a few coins onto the stall behind him. “Grazie,” he added, another pink puff making its way to his clutches before ducking into an incoming group and coming upon a lone, wandering person.

“Mi scusi, signora!” he called out, lightly jogging up to them. The simple white tee tucked neatly into light wash jeans and matching sneakers made him seem like any other attendee. “Err, excuse me,” he corrected himself with a slight bow of the head. Before him was a girl, silver-haired and yellow-eyed, standing only a few inches taller. “Sorry to call out to ya so suddenly but, uh… Ya know where this strongwoman is? I’m startin’ to think the real mystery ere’s the show’s location, not the lady herself.” He flashed her a charming smile, or as charming as it could be while dual-wielding cotton candy. It’d been a small while since the announcement and, to be honest, he wasn’t in any real rush to actually see the show. He just needed someone at his side for the moment. Someone to stave off any attention.

“So if you could kindly point me to—” prying his attention away to look around once more, his brows shot up when the two figures from earlier came into his view. “Ah, merda!” he jumped into a squat behind her, holding the sugary treats so they’d cover his face. “Don’t let ‘em see me,” he said quickly peeking up at her from the ground, cerulean eyes vibrant under the sun’s rays. “See those two over there? The two bozos stickin’ out like a pair of sore thumbs? I think… I think they’ve been followin’ me.”

Wes gestured to them. The two figures seemed to be searching for something by the way their heads turned this way and that, both wearing finely pressed suits and dark sunglasses, both with mildly annoyed, mildly scared looks about them. Some people avoided them, while the more unknowing few walked past them like it were nothing. Though he seemed to sound worried, adding a little shake to his voice and everything, he couldn’t help but suck in his lips to contain his growing amusement after he was done talking, hiding away behind the candy immediately. If she were observant enough, maybe she’d caught the slight smirk.

“Trouble?”

His ears practically perked up at her question, pretty blues coming to blink up at her from hiding behind her shadow. By the way she looked and addressed him, the snowy-haired woman appeared to be cautious due to his sudden decision to hide away, that caution clear in her voice and from the way her gilded eyes took in his casual appearance. She didn’t step away, though; and he was pleased she hadn’t.

“Signora, I’m in so much trouble it’s practically criminal!” he said, mischief boiling down to a mirthful laugh and light shake of his head. A little on the nose for a joke, but the mafioso only found the fact funnier. He wasn’t taking the situation too seriously, that much would be clear to anyone.

The two suits continued looking this way and that, a final glance at each other being the last thing they did before dispersing in opposite directions. He was good, it seemed. For now. “No, really,” he continued, seemingly coming down from the merry bout and into a calmer state. “I’m pretty sure someone set them on my tail. Family, possibly?” Coming to a stand, he studied the area around him. A small second of silence falling between the two. The redhead nodded to himself, as though coming to a decision, an easy smile falling over his features as his gaze returned to the woman. “No. I’m pretty sure it was the folks back home. They haven’t really done anything…”

The smile, although easy, came accompanied with doubt and consideration, and he almost trailed off in thought before picking up once more. “Right, actually. Sorry, this is probably really weird for you, ain’t it?”